People who experience pain don't always want to speak about it. Often they are afraid that if they don't bear up under the pain without help, others will view them negatively. They think that they will be seen as weak or as a "complainer" instead of someone who has a strong enough character to endure it; or they may believe they will be labeled a "problem patient." But people have a right to describe their pain and to have it taken seriously by their healthcare providers. And they need appropriate treatment as part of their overall care. When that doesn't happen, the problem is not likely to be with the patient but with the care.
In other cases, people who are ill have ideas about pain and its treatment that don't line up with the facts. For instance, they may think that treating pain will distract physicians from treating the disease that is causing the pain. But that is a false choice. Pain and illness can be treated at the same time, and relieving pain is often an important way to help the treatments for an underlying disease work more effectively.
People with serious illness may also believe that increasing pain means the disease is getting worse; and sometimes they withhold the information as a way to avoid facing that possibility. But advancing disease is only one explanation for new or worsening pain. Pains can come and go for a variety of reasons and should always be assessed by a professional.
Finally, there are ways in which pain touches on the spirit, and these may prompt other thoughts about what the pain means. Some religious traditions view suffering as a condition of earthly life that must be accepted, and this may allow those in pain to reframe their experience of pain. But some people look at suffering in a way that turns it into even more of a hardship. They may blame themselves for the pain they're having, viewing it as a punishment they somehow deserve. When burdened with those thoughts it may be a good idea to talk with a counselor or clergy member. Those feelings are not a reason for keeping silent about pain when talking with healthcare providers.